Optical inspection apparatus, a method of inspecting a substrate, and a method of treating a substrate

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9915623-B2
Application number	US-201615218584-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 25, 2016
Priority date	Sep 23, 2015
Publication date	Mar 13, 2018
Grant date	Mar 13, 2018

Abstract

An optical inspection apparatus includes an inspection target unit on which an inspection target is loaded, an illumination optical unit configured to irradiate incident light to the inspection target, an objective lens unit disposed between the illumination optical unit and the inspection target unit, a detection optical unit configured to receive reflective light reflected from the inspection target to thereby detect a presence or absence of a defect on the inspection target, and a control unit configured to control the illumination optical unit and the detection optical unit. The illumination optical unit includes a light source part configured to irradiate the incident light, and a spatial filter array configured to modify a transmission region of the incident light irradiated from the light source part. The spatial filter array includes a spatial filter part, and a filter movement part configured to move the spatial filter part.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An optical inspection apparatus comprising:
an inspection target unit on which an inspection target is loaded;
an illumination optical unit configured to irradiate incident light to the inspection target;
an objective lens unit disposed between the illumination optical unit and the inspection target unit;
a detection optical unit receiving reflective light reflected from the inspection target to thereby detect a defect on the inspection target; and
a control unit connected to the illumination optical unit and the detection optical unit,
wherein the illumination optical unit comprises:
a light source part generating the incident light; and
a plurality of spatial filters modifying a transmission region of the incident light,
wherein the spatial filters comprise:
a reference filter having a hole to transmit the incident light; and
a plurality of processing filters having openings different from the hole wherein the control unit controls the illumination optical unit to provide the incident light to the defect through the hole using a reference filter and to move the hole relative to the objective lens unit and selects a measurable one of the openings corresponding to an area measured by the hole, and
wherein the control unit controls the illumination optical unit to load one of the processing filters having the selected measurable opening between the light source part and the objective lens unit.

2. The optical inspection apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the illumination optical unit further comprises a filter movement part including:
a first filter movement part configured to move the spatial filter part in a first direction; and
a second filter movement part configured to move the spatial filter part in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction.

3. The optical inspection apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the hole is smaller than the openings.

4. An optical inspection apparatus comprising:
an inspection target unit on which an inspection target is loaded;
an illumination optical unit irradiating incident light to the inspection target;
an objective lens unit disposed between the illumination optical unit and the inspection target unit;
a detection optical unit receiving reflective light reflected from the inspection target to thereby detect a defect on the inspection target; and
a control unit connected to the illumination optical unit and the detection optical unit,
wherein the illumination optical unit comprises:
a light source part generating the incident light; and
a spatial filters modifying a transmission region of the incident light,
wherein the spatial filters comprises:
a reference filter having a hole to transmit the incident light; and
a processing filter having an opening different from the hole

wherein the reference filter comprises:
a light shielding portion; and
a hole surrounded by the light shielding portion,

wherein the control unit designs the opening using a result of a scanning process performed while moving the hole in at least one of the first direction or the second direction,
wherein the control unit obtains defect data while performing the scanning process using the hole when the incident light is irradiated,
wherein the control unit controls the illumination optical unit to move the hole corresponding to excess regions in which a signal-to-noise ratio of the defect data is higher than a critical value previously determined, and
wherein the control unit obtains a shape of the opening designed based on positions of the hole.

5. The optical inspection apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the scanning process is performed a plurality of times and wherein the opening is designed using an average value extracted from positions of the hole of the scanning processes performed the plurality of times.

6. The optical inspection apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the optical inspection apparatus is a bright field optical system.

7. The optical inspection apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the detection optical unit comprises: a tube lens array,
wherein the tube lens array comprises:
a first tube lens having a first magnification; and
a second tube lens having a second magnification.

8. The optical inspection apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the first magnification is lower than the second magnification,
wherein the first tube lens is configured to align the inspection target, and
wherein the second tube lens is configured to detect the defect on the inspection target.

9. The optical inspection apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the detection optical unit further comprises: a second spatial filter disposed between the tube lens array and the objective lens unit, and
wherein the second spatial filter has a second opening having the same shape as the opening of the processing filter.

10. The optical inspection apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the objective lens unit comprises:
an objective lens; and
a protective fluid supply part that supplies a protective fluid to a space between the objective lens and the inspection target.

11. The optical inspection apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the protective fluid supply part is disposed outside the objective lens.

12. The optical inspection apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the objective lens unit further comprises: an objective lens cover surrounding the objective lens, and
wherein the protective fluid supply part is disposed to penetrate the objective lens cover.

13. The optical inspection apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the protective fluid supply part is disposed in a body of the objective lens.

14. An optical inspection apparatus comprising:
an inspection target unit on which an inspection target is loaded;
an illumination optical unit irradiating incident light to the inspection target;
an objective lens unit disposed between the illumination optical unit and the inspection target unit;
a control unit connected to control the illumination optical unit
wherein the illumination optical unit comprises:
a light source part generating the incident light; and
spatial filters modifying a transmission region of the incident light

wherein the spatial filters comprise:
a reference filter having a hole to transmit the incident light; and
a plurality of processing filters having openings different from the hole,
wherein the control unit controls the illumination optical unit to provide the incident light to the defect through the hole using a reference filter and to move the hole relative to the objective lens unit and selects a measurable one of the openings corresponding to an area measured by the hole, and
wherein the control unit controls the illumination optical unit to load one of the processing filters having the selected measurable opening between the light source part and the objective lens unit.

15. The illumination optical system of claim 14 , wherein the illumination optical unit further comprises a filter movement part including:
a first filter movement part configured to move the spatial filter part in a first direction; and
a second filter movement part configured to move the spatial filter part in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction.

16. The illumination optical system of claim 14 , wherein the hole is smaller than the openings.

17. The illumination optical system of claim 14 , wherein the reference filter comprises a plurality of reference filters.

Assignees

• Samsung Electronics Co Ltd

Inventors

• Kim Kwang Soo
• Kim Taejoong
• Jeon Byeonghwan
• Choi Yongsuk
• Kim Youngduk
• Oh Taeseok
• Lee Sangyun
• Choi Yong-Ho

Classifications

• G02B27/0988

  Diaphragms, spatial filters, masks for removing or filtering a part of the beam · CPC title

• G01N21/9501 Primary

  Semiconductor wafers (manufacturing processes per se of semiconductor devices implementing a measuring step H10P74/20) · CPC title

• G02B13/0095

  Relay lenses or rod lenses (in instruments for viewing the inside of hollow bodies G02B23/2446) · CPC title

• G02B3/0006

  Arrays (G02B3/02, G02B5/188 take precedence) · CPC title

• G01N21/95623

  using a spatial filtering method (per se G02B) · CPC title